With only three days left until the predicted apocalypse, the small town of Franklin Springs, Georgia, has become a wasteland of abandoned cars, abandoned homes, abandoned businesses, and abandoned people. People like Rainbow Williams. Rain isn’t afraid of dying. In fact, she’s looking forward to it. If she can just outrun her pain until April 23, she’ll never have to feel it at all. Wes Parker has survived every horrible thing this life has thrown at him with nothing more than his resourcefulness and disarming good looks. Why should the end of the world be any different? All he needs are some basic supplies, shelter, and a sucker willing to help him out, which is exactly what he finds when he returns to his hometown of Franklin Springs. As society crumbles, dangers mount, and secrets refuse to stay buried, two lost souls are thrust together in a twist of fate—one who will do anything to survive and one who can’t wait to die. Perhaps, together, they can learn how to live. Before their time runs out.

If you're an avid reader, and if you're reading this blog it's a big chance you are, once in a while, you get lucky and become so pleasurably surprised by a book, that you can't stop thinking about it, even weeks later. I'm here to tell you, friends, that Praying for Rain was that book for me this year. And I recommend it to everyone who will listen.

One thing I have learned about myself that I live for stories that have great characterization in the middle of some chaotic world event. Not only was the "event" believable, but so were the characters. And everything is a slow build as little clues each build slowly, patiently, with such an amazing story and I cannot wait to read the continuation. Because yes, although it doesn't end in a cliffhanger per se, there's more left to tell in the way that it ends. And the next book is just going to build on characters hinted about in this story. Honestly, I can't wait.

Rain is such a complex character. I don't think this story would have worked otherwise. From the beginning, you can sense that there's something not quite right about her and this goes mostly unexplored until she encounters Wes - and he's got his own agenda, one that Rain doesn't mind going along with, because really, what's left for her? Well, we really don't find out until close to the end. This book is an amazing exploration into what people do to survive, how people cope with mental health illness, and everything in between. It's probably one of my favorite things about this book: it both comments on society at large but also takes a magnifying glass and holds it right up to us, exposing what makes us as people tick and what holds us together (hell, and what makes us break down).

I LOVED this book. There's just nothing else to add. And because it's a little on the shorter side, it didn't take me long to finish, which I did in one sitting since once I started, I couldn't stop.

If you're even a bit curious, I beg you - pick this book up!

Trigger Warnings: rape, death, depression, and a multitude of other subjects that are messed up and comes with the gloom and horror that comes from the darkness of humanity. Stay away if any of these things are hard for you.

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading is a weekly meme hosted by
Book Journey * *
Here is what we Finished, Currently Reading, and what is
Next In line. How about you? These were some fantastic reads and we are so excited to share what we think with you! So make sure you keep your eyes out for our reviews!

Top Ten Tuesdays (TTT) is a weekly event now hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week's TTT is: Page to Screen freebie. For this freebie, I decided to do my top ten favorite book-to-screen adaptations.

This adaptation was the only one that made me jump ships because the Peter on the film version was much better than the one I had thought of in my head while reading the book.

I admit that I haven't seen the other adaptation yet (the one with Colin Firth) so I am biased for now, but I love this film. That characters, the setting, the way it was filmed, I love this movie and re-watch it often.

I really love the cast they choose for this film, I feel like it was dead-on after watching. I love the way everything was filmed and the way the story was told, it was all so well done.

This book was so good, and so was the movie. It was so well done! They did such a good job of handling the scenes, both comical and serious ones.

This is no surprise.. but I had to include the Harry Potter adaptations! I'm not sure which one is my favorite but I do like the later ones in the series more than the first two.

Another series I had to include. This series was so well done on film, from the characters to the special effects to delivering the themes on film just as they are in the book. My favorite film of the series is Catching Fire.

I love the cast they choose for this adaptation, they were perfect. My only complaint was that some of the plot was left out or jumbled up in translation from book to screen. But most of that I understand was because the movie is a stand-alone where the book is the first in a series.

This movie was just as good as the book. I loved the cast and the way the movie played out on screen. This is one I keep in mind to rewatch.

This book translated better to screen than I thought it would! I'm so excited that they are going to do another season (premiering soon!)

I really like the way that they put this book to film. I think Emily Blunt did such a good job portraying the complexity and questionability of the main character. It was a well done adaptation!